Husband, Wife Share Everything -- Even Breast Cancer
Couple Says Finding Literature About Breast Cancer In Men Challenging
UPDATED: 5:59 pm EDT May 10,
2004
Men make up less than 1 percent of the more than 200,000 cases of breast cancer diagnosed in the United States each year. So it seems against the odds that a couple would face breast cancer within months of each other.
But one Wisconsin husband and wife faced those odds and beat them, reported WISC-TV in Madison, Wis.The Strupps have been side by side, doing everything together, for last 38 years -- from water aerobics to taking care of a variety of birds that flock to their feeders.They had no idea just how far their sharing would go until Frank found a lump almost two years ago."I just said, 'This is unusual. Maybe I should check with somebody,'" he said. "But I didn't think of breast cancer."But it was breast cancer -- something rare for men.
"He pulled up his T-shirt, and my heart sank because I could see the inverted nipple, and I knew what that probably meant," Rhea said.It meant Frank's breast had to be removed. What the Strupps didn't know is that they'd have to fight a second wave of breast cancer."It's harder to be the partner of someone with breast cancer than it is to be the person with breast cancer," Rhea said.But then Rhea became a person with breast cancer -- just months after barely keeping her head above water when dealing with her husband's diagnosis."My experience was very different because I'd been through Frank's experience with him," Rhea said.Frank's post-mastectomy experience includes taking Tamoxifen. After a mammogram detected cancer, Rhea had a lumpectomy and radiation. But as time went on, Frank became confident his wife would beat breast cancer."Well, it was disturbing to me, I'll be honest with you," Frank said. "But then I thought, 'Well gee, my experience hasn't been that terrible.' Maybe if they caught this on time, we won't have much of a real problem."Just like they shared everything else, Frank shared an experience that made Rhea's fight against cancer a little easier."With Frank, we never quite knew what the next step was going to be," Rhea said. "But for me, I knew what was coming next."Because of their shared experiences and treatment, both are now cancer free.Of the 216,000 breast cancer cases diagnosed last year, 1,450 were men. The Strupps said one of the biggest challenges was finding literature on men's breast cancer.
 BREAST CANCER  Interactive: Inside Breast Cancer Spread Word Myths & FactsCancer Quiz DetectionRisk Factors MythsMammogramsDisease In MenLiving After Breast CancerSELF-EXAM WEB RESOURCES |
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Couple Battles Breast CancerDistributed by Internet Broadcasting Systems, Inc. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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